At the time of the year when the days get darker and colder, we humans seems to need a festival of light which will give us hope. In the West, we celebrate Hannukah or Christmas – even Halloween and the next day, All Saints Day or the Day of the Dead. But the Hindu holiday, Diwali, which was celebrated last week, is also a festival of lights and the similarities underneath the differences are striking.
Imagine Christmas, New Year, Passover, Easter and July 4th all rolled into one holiday--that's Diwali. Houses are given a spic and span cleaning, people wear new clothes, eat a lot of sweets and get together with family and friends. There are fireworks and all through the house there are lights ablaze -- tiny cups of oil with cotton wicks.
Like Hinduism itself, the diversity of Gods honoured and remembered at this holiday are multi-faceted! So many different Gods and different stories. But two stand out: the story of Rama and the story of Lakshmi.
The Ramayana tells the tale of Rama and Sita. A young prince and his wife, theirs was the love of a lifetime. They were happy, content models of how husband and wife should love and how they should honour their parents. But along came Ravana, a wicked, cruel, power hungry beast. He kidnapped Sita and forced her away --against her will-- to his palace. Rama has lost the “light of his life”. But eventually, with the help of the Monkey God, he overcomes all obstacles and gets her back. (Unfortunately, the story doesn’t have a particularly happy ending.) The story emphasizes the importance of the Hindu value of duty. But it also reminds us, as Halloween does, that there are bad spirits that frighten us and could snatch us away. But perseverance, bravery, and the help of others (including the Gods) conquers the bad guy.
The same can be said for the story of Hannukkah. Bad guys take over the Temple, but perseverance, bravery, and the help of others (including God) conquers the bad guys.
Diwali also celebrates the hope that the New Year, which begins the day after, will be a welcome one. The second story is of the beautiful Goddess Lakshmi. Lakshmi, Goddess of wealth and prosperity, was temporarily expelled from God Indra’s court. In disguise, she wandered in the complete darkness of night with no moon, stars or house lights to guide her. Finally, afar in the distance, she saw a tiny light in a hut. She knocked on the door and was welcomed warmly by the family that lived there. Even though they didn't know who she was, she was shown such hospitality that as thanks she blessed the family and made them wealthy. So Diwali celebrates the welcoming of the spirit of God into each and every household for the New Year.
There is a biblical story of God approaching the home of Abraham in disguise and being welcomed into his home. The value of hospitality, of treating others as if they may be a God – or Goddess – incarnate, even if they’re looking like a beggar is a shared idea.
Isn't it fascinating that the holiday -- while so different on the outside -- has such similar themes on the inside to Halloween, Hanukkah and Christmas? Because these holidays also celebrate good forces conquering evil forces and use the light to keep back the dark. Hanukkah honours those little guys who managed to overthrow the big, bad army and by doing so saved their religious traditions. Christmas recognizes that even a tiny little baby, born against great odds, can grow up to save his people. All souls Day/Day of the Dead which happens the day after Halloween, Christmas and Hanukkah all involve cleaning up and celebrating with family and friends. Like Diwali we shall light our pumpkins, our menorahs or our Christmas trees and sit safely in their glow graced by their beauty, hope, and promise.
As we begin to shiver from cold, as the light fades more quickly from the glumly grey sky, as we face the reality that all life has seemingly left the natural world and as we begin to feel overwhelmed by the powers beyond our control (whether they be work or weather) -- it is now that we really need the reminder that there is meaning in life, there will be a vanquishing of evil, there is a welcoming light ‘at the end of the tunnel’, light and life will return and there is holy wisdom. Against great odds: Rama does get Sita back, Lakshmi does find a light in the forest, the boogey man doesn’t get us, the Maccabees do regain their temple and their ways, the baby Jesus is born safe and sound, and we will see Spring, warmth and long languorous days again!
So here's to the lights of Diwali, Halloween, Hannukah and Christmas. Here's to their promise and their hope and their reason's for celebration!
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Tuesday, October 28, 2014
Sunday, October 19, 2014
WONDER
This was an essay I had published in the Jewish magazine, TIKKUN about 10 years ago. It still holds up, I think.
One of my favorite biblical characters is Moses. He is my favorite because of his sense of wonder. Think about it: There he was, out in the desert taking care of his father-in-law's sheep. That's a lonely, boring job -- in a desert no less! Then he saw:
"a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked and behold the bush burned with fire, but the bush was not consumed. And Moses said, "I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. And when God saw that Moses turned aside to see, God called to him out of the midst of the bush…"
Exodus 3.2
Now, whether you take that literally (which I don't,)or figuratively, Moses saw something so astounding, so out of the ordinary, so amazing that he turned aside to see it. And it was only then that God spoke to him. It was only when Moses was willing to stop his daily routine, stop following or leading the sheep, stop wandering in a la-di-da or driven sort of way, and turn toward to consider this sight before him that the essence of creation spoke to him.
I think about that burning bush almost every day at this time of the year. I look around at these trees with their bright oranges, yellows and reds. I see the sun slant light through the branches and to me, they look like burning bushes. They look awesome and beautiful and on fire although they are not consumed. Unfortunately, too often I'm rushing from here to there or there to here. So while I might take note of those trees, I don't "turn aside to see them" as often as I should. And what would I hear if I did turn aside and see these great sights?
I think trees talk to us. Of course, they don't use words. But with their beauty and their majesty they remind us of who and where we are in this world. So do birds and sky and ground. They speak to us, but we no longer have the patience to listen to them. Our inner ear has atrophied from lack of use. We fill ourselves up with so much human noise that we don't leave any room for nature sounds. Indigenous people always read the signs of nature around them. As did Buddha when he sat under a tree for 40 days and there became enlightened. Or Jesus when he said, "Consider the lilies of the field."
The philosopher Martin Buber, in his short but dense book, I-Thou, wrote that when we have a relationship with someone or something, it's a dialogue or an exchange. We face one another and connect. That's two way communication. The other doesn't have to be a person, it could be a tree, a rock or a bird. But that other is in relation to us so both are affected. When we are in an I-It relationship, says Buber, the other is just a thing, an object, nothing that touches our being. Unfortunately, too often we see the people around us as "its", as mere objects for our use. We see the trees, the grass and the stars as mere backdrops for our lives.
But when we stop and face them, when we turn aside from our own dramas, we can't help but be in awe of the creative power in front of us. It changes our perspective, our whole way of looking at life.
Last night everyone in my family was rushing around. Half of us were coming in and half of us were going out. My husband went out to his bridge game, my older son to a babysitting job, my little one to the TV and I to write this, correct papers AND read the newspaper. But when my older son came home, he took us all outside because Mercury and Jupiter were in an alignment that only happens every 7 years. We looked up at the sky and there they were. It was awesome! Like two stars, these two planets, so far away and seemingly on either side of us, were sitting side by side shining away. Reflected light beaming down on us from millions of miles away and only for now will they be in this place for us to see. We stood there huddled in the dark, little human beings. And I was very glad that despite all that I had to do, I had said like Moses, "I will now turn aside, and see this great sight." Did God speak to me? I think the energy force of creation -- which is what I call God -- speaks to me or any of us every time we turn aside to listen.
One of my favorite biblical characters is Moses. He is my favorite because of his sense of wonder. Think about it: There he was, out in the desert taking care of his father-in-law's sheep. That's a lonely, boring job -- in a desert no less! Then he saw:
"a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked and behold the bush burned with fire, but the bush was not consumed. And Moses said, "I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. And when God saw that Moses turned aside to see, God called to him out of the midst of the bush…"
Exodus 3.2
Now, whether you take that literally (which I don't,)or figuratively, Moses saw something so astounding, so out of the ordinary, so amazing that he turned aside to see it. And it was only then that God spoke to him. It was only when Moses was willing to stop his daily routine, stop following or leading the sheep, stop wandering in a la-di-da or driven sort of way, and turn toward to consider this sight before him that the essence of creation spoke to him.
I think about that burning bush almost every day at this time of the year. I look around at these trees with their bright oranges, yellows and reds. I see the sun slant light through the branches and to me, they look like burning bushes. They look awesome and beautiful and on fire although they are not consumed. Unfortunately, too often I'm rushing from here to there or there to here. So while I might take note of those trees, I don't "turn aside to see them" as often as I should. And what would I hear if I did turn aside and see these great sights?
I think trees talk to us. Of course, they don't use words. But with their beauty and their majesty they remind us of who and where we are in this world. So do birds and sky and ground. They speak to us, but we no longer have the patience to listen to them. Our inner ear has atrophied from lack of use. We fill ourselves up with so much human noise that we don't leave any room for nature sounds. Indigenous people always read the signs of nature around them. As did Buddha when he sat under a tree for 40 days and there became enlightened. Or Jesus when he said, "Consider the lilies of the field."
The philosopher Martin Buber, in his short but dense book, I-Thou, wrote that when we have a relationship with someone or something, it's a dialogue or an exchange. We face one another and connect. That's two way communication. The other doesn't have to be a person, it could be a tree, a rock or a bird. But that other is in relation to us so both are affected. When we are in an I-It relationship, says Buber, the other is just a thing, an object, nothing that touches our being. Unfortunately, too often we see the people around us as "its", as mere objects for our use. We see the trees, the grass and the stars as mere backdrops for our lives.
But when we stop and face them, when we turn aside from our own dramas, we can't help but be in awe of the creative power in front of us. It changes our perspective, our whole way of looking at life.
Last night everyone in my family was rushing around. Half of us were coming in and half of us were going out. My husband went out to his bridge game, my older son to a babysitting job, my little one to the TV and I to write this, correct papers AND read the newspaper. But when my older son came home, he took us all outside because Mercury and Jupiter were in an alignment that only happens every 7 years. We looked up at the sky and there they were. It was awesome! Like two stars, these two planets, so far away and seemingly on either side of us, were sitting side by side shining away. Reflected light beaming down on us from millions of miles away and only for now will they be in this place for us to see. We stood there huddled in the dark, little human beings. And I was very glad that despite all that I had to do, I had said like Moses, "I will now turn aside, and see this great sight." Did God speak to me? I think the energy force of creation -- which is what I call God -- speaks to me or any of us every time we turn aside to listen.
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